George Karl Says He Doesn’t Understand Why the Nuggets Fired Him

The Nuggets replaced former head coach George Karl with Brian Shaw this past offseason, a move that some thought was unnecessary and uncalled for. And according to the Boston Globe, Karl is still unsure why he was axed: “Karl, along with Lionel Hollins, who guided the Grizzlies to the Western Conference finals, are unemployed, a testament to the volatile nature of the relationship between coaches and the new generation of club management. ‘I was amazed at how quickly I accepted what happened,’ Karl said, ‘because I had 8½ great years and last year was probably my most fun coaching any basketball team I’ve ever been associated with. I don’t have a lot of bitterness other than I don’t understand. But not understanding — when you are working in a world of millions, millions, and millions of dollars, there’s a lot of things I don’t understand. There’s a lot of contracts we give players that I don’t understand. There’s a lot of trades that I don’t understand. There are a lot of decisions I don’t understand. I can’t deny there’s an anger and frustration. But there’s much more celebration in my heart than anything else.’ Karl reached the NBA Finals once in 25 years as a head coach but racked up 1,131 victories and helped resurrect franchises in Seattle, Milwaukee, and Denver.”